


Thirteen Lashes

by kickcows



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Friendship/Love, M/M, Whipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-02
Updated: 2013-09-02
Packaged: 2017-12-25 10:20:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/951940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kickcows/pseuds/kickcows
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Roxas had failed his mission for the Organization, and had to be punished properly for the mistake. Rated M for: violence and whipping.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Thirteen Lashes

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by Nijuuni's artwork [Scar](http://nijuukoo.tumblr.com/post/60018841254/813-month-day-27-scar-word-prompt-from).

Axel kept a straight face as he snapped his wrist back, the heavy weight of the corded handle almost slipping out of his grip. The first strike had already been difficult enough to land, but it had, and their superior had demanded he continue with the punishment. The three separate cords flew through the air as he snapped his wrist, the tips of the whip striking true on the smaller man’s body. Blood flew through the air as he pulled the whip back, a drop landing just under the triangle marking beneath his eye. He almost lost it then, the rusty fragrance hitting his nostrils, overpowering the mental block he had put up once this punishment had begun. He raised his left hand up to his face, quickly wiping away the blood, rubbing it along the seam of his pants, not caring if the blood stained the gold. If the blood had stayed where it was on his face, the whip that was already being held onto with a tight grip, his knuckles a pale white against the brown of the leather, would drop to the ground. And then, it would be him to be next in line for this punishment.

“Again.” Their superior, Xemnas, repeated. The spikes of his crimson hair dipped down on his back, as Axel snapped his wrist back once more, fixated on the rivulets of blood that were dripping down from the wounds he had already inflicted on the body in front of him.

Roxas.

The punishment was to be thirteen lashes, for the crime of failing an extremely important assignment. Roxas knew the risk, and took it anyway, even against the redhead’s pleading. Axel had heard their Superior’s right hand man saying that this was to be a test, to see just how well Roxas was doing in their organization. Axel had played it cool, not wanting the man with the azure hair, Saix, to know just what he had overheard. But it hadn’t mattered, as the mission that was doomed for failure had taken place, and now, here he was, being forced to perform the punishment.

He had thought that Xemnas had not known of their friendship, but was a fool to think that. As his wrist snapped for a third time, the whiz of the three cords pierced the air, the blows landing across three lashes he had already administered. There were criss-cross marks on Roxas’ back now. And yet, the smaller blond had yet to make a sound, standing perfectly still.

Iron anklets adorned Roxas’ ankles, as he had been chained to the prison cell, Axel's eyes focusing on the shackles while he waited for another command. But only his feet, not his arms. No, Xemnas wasn’t cruel enough to keep him trapped in one place, never taking away the use of both his arms and his feet. No, just the feet, so the blond could reach out towards the cell, but never quite get there because of the restraints on his feet.

It had only been twenty four hours, but it was the worst twenty four hours for Axel. He had seen Roxas return, and watched as those shackles had been placed on his feet, after he had been stripped of his clothes. Torn off of his body as if he was one of the bad guys, one of the ones they were always being sent out to take care of. His large cerulean eyes had met Axel’s emerald eyes, the immense meloncholy tangible in his reflection. But Axel stayed strong, not wanting to cry as his best friend got led away, knowing just what was coming.

The last person to have failed an assignment had been administered a lashing, but it had only been nine. That person was no longer with them, after being too broken by the punishment to be of any use to their organization. Axel stayed up the entire night, sneaking off to Roxas’ cell when he knew everyone else was asleep. He sat down on the floor, sadness rolling over him as he saw the petite blond just sitting there, his arms down at his sides.

“Axel...what do I do?” Roxas asked, his voice barely audible. “I’m lost right now. I know what’s going to happen, I know what he’s going to do to me. I remember what happened to Demyx.”

He gripped the bars of the cell tightly. “Don’t think about that, Roxas. Maybe it won’t happen. Maybe he’s just trying to prove his point to you. To us. That failure isn’t allowed.” His pristine uniform pants glowed in the moonlight, a contrast to the rags that Roxas had been left to wear, Xemnas ordering that he only be allowed to keep a tattered pair of shorts on.

“But...what do I do?” The hopelessness in his voice was breaking Axel’s heart, but the redhead wouldn’t allow himself to feel that pain. If he were to give into it, then it would destroy his best friend. The one who, when he first joined their organization, had been made his unofficial partner, until Xemnas felt Roxas knew the ropes well enough to go on his own. He couldn’t do that to him, not after everything they had already been through together.

Gripping the bars tighter, Axel sat up on his knees and stared into his cerulean eyes. “Don’t show any sign that you’re hurting. Don’t make a sound. Don’t cry. Just detach yourself as much as you can, if he does what he did to Demyx.” The memories of Demyx’ screams infiltrated Axel’s mind, as he saw the lashings repeat in a loop. “Stay quiet. If you have to, bite your lip so hard that it bleeds. Just don’t show him that you’re in any sort of pain. Because we both know he’ll take satisfaction in it, and will just keep doing it to you.”

“What if…...what if it’s you?” Roxas whispered, his eyes beginning to well up with unshed tears. “Axel, I don’t want you to have to go through this with me. I want you as far away from it as you can possibly be.”

Axel let go of the bars, and sank down on his knees, his heels digging into his backside. “He’s already said that we’re all to be there to see it.” He lowered his voice, his vocal cords becoming thick with the tears his eyes want to shed. “We’re to meet in the Round Room, where whatever is going to happen will occur.”

“The Round Room.” Roxas sighed, hanging his head. “That doesn’t sound very promising.”

A bell began to chime in the distance, signalling that dawn had finally arrived. “I have to go now, Roxas.” Axel stood up from the floor, brushing off his pants. He reached through the bars, his shoulder pinned against the cool metal, as he strained to give comfort to his friend. Roxas sat up on his knees, and reached out towards him. The tips of their fingers collided for a fraction of a second, before the strain was too much for the blond, who sat back down, a broken sigh falling from his lips.

The tips of his fingers burned as Axel pulled away from the bars. He tried to meet the teen’s gaze, but Roxas refused to lift his head up. “Remember what I said, Roxas. Show no sign of it hurting. Got it memorized?”

“Yeah, I understand.” Roxas snorted quietly, the phrase that Axel tended to use a lot when he had just joined the organization hitting too close to home for the both of them. “Hey, Axel?” Those blue eyes finally looked upon his.

“What is it?” He felt his breath catch in his throat, but didn’t let it show.

“No matter what happens, I want you to know that you’re my best friend. And that all of this, it doesn’t mean anything, okay?”

The tightness in his throat returned. “I know, Roxas.” He nodded his head and walked away quickly from the cell, shaking as he headed back to his room. When he had got there, he had seen a note sticking just barely under his door, the envelope a recognizable sight. He stepped into his bedroom and picked the note up off the floor. Opening the flap, he read exactly what he had been fearing the most. He shredded the piece of paper into a million pieces, wanting the orders to disappear, just as the words that had been written on the paper had.

Drawing his eyes away from the remnants of the chains protruding from the iron shackles, Axel tried not to gag as the smell of blood became more pungent. “Again.” Xemnas replied from his chair, sitting up high above the two of them. Axel felt his arm waver, eyes glued to the markings on Roxas’ back, knowing that these lashes were going to be a permanent reminder of his failure. They would be a permanent reminder of what Axel, Roxas' best friend, had done to him. That fact made the handle seem like it weighed a thousand pounds, the energy draining out of his body. “Again!!” Xemnas shouted down at them.

His wrist snapped for a fourth time, the cords striking the top of Roxas’ shoulders, creating new bloody lines. Axel cringed inwardly, his face still masked with no expression on his face. He wouldn’t let Xemnas see how much this was hurting him, just as the blond was keeping his silence, just as he had told him to. Axel hoped that it wouldn’t be long until Xemnas grew tired of receiving no reaction from either of them.

“Again.”

That voice cut like a knife through his heart. The ache in Axel’s hand was becoming extreme, as he gripped the handle tighter than before. With a quick flick, the cords struck Roxas’ back for a fifth time, another criss-cross pattern created from the lashing. Three more lashes in successioin happened, each one more difficult than the last for the redhead. On the ninth strike, the one that he remembered Demyx breaking on, Axel pulled his hand back. He was ready for when his Superior would command him to strike again. But the order never came.

“Everyone is dismissed.” Xemnas stood up, and climbed down to the floor, leaving the Round Room. Soon, the other members trailed out, no one saying a word as they left the room. Once the last person left, Axel croaked out, “They’re gone.”

Roxas turned around, his face as pale as a ghost. He dropped to his knees, the loud thud of his kneecaps hitting the floor making Axel sick to his stomach. He closed the distance between the two of them, dropping to his knees in a similar fashion, the last two buttons of his uniform popping open. The tears that he had been keeping inside finally began to fall, as his right arm circled Roxas’ neck, careful to not touch the bleeding marks. His left arm rested on top of the blond’s head, the only other place he felt it was safe to touch him.

“Roxas….Roxas, I’m so sorry….I’m so very sorry,” Axel’s voice broke with every apology, as their foreheads pressed together. He could hear Roxas’ labored breathing, every struggle of breath causing him to cry harder.

A trembling hand touched his chest. “I didn’t….make...any noise…”

“No, no you didn’t.” Axel’s tears wouldn’t stopping falling, as he heard the weakness in his best friend’s voice. “Don’t talk anymore, Roxas. I’m going to take you to the infirmary, okay? We’ll get you fixed up fast.”

“Please.” Roxas fell forward. Axel dropped the whip and caught him with ease, sniffling as those bloody marks mocked him. Roxas turned his head and looked up at him. “Don’t...blame yourself…”

“I can’t help it.” He picked him up in his arms, not caring that the blood was ruining his uniform. The gold embroidery on his jacket was sure to be stained, just like his pants, but it didn’t matter to him. His nose rubbed against the side of Roxas’ soft spikes. “I’m so sorry, Roxas. Please...don’t hate me for the rest of your life because of what I was forced to do.”

Roxas leaned his head back, sighing softly. “I couldn’t...do that...Axel. You’re...my best friend. You told me...not to make a sound...and I only got...eight lashes. Eight. Not….thirteen.”

“You’re right.” Axel headed towards the infirmary. “Only eight. You did such a good job, Roxas.” He left him in the care with the nurse, wiping his face off, not bothering to look down at his jacket, knowing what he’d find there. “I’ll be back soon to check on you.”

“You’d...better…” Roxas’ cerulean eyes showed signs of life once more as their eyes locked on to one another. He tapped his finger against his temple weakly, smiling for the redhead. “I got it….memorized.”

Axel turned on his heel, a fresh set of tears threatening to fall from his eyes. He hoped that the punishment hadn’t permanently damaged his best friend, that the marks would turn into scars, only the physical kind. He knew that would never happen, as this punishment was meant to be a double-edged sword, leaving scars of both the physical and emotional. But he would try and make Roxas forget, would try to not notice the scars that would be a constant reminder of what he had done to his best friend. He had to forget, or it would cripple him. Axel had to stay strong for the both of them. 


End file.
